


Rumor Has It

by potatoscribbles



Category: Sing (2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Musical, F/M, other characters from the audition will here too!, save me from being trash
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-28
Updated: 2017-03-05
Packaged: 2018-09-27 09:52:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,723
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10001987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/potatoscribbles/pseuds/potatoscribbles
Summary: She's a leader of a rock band. He's in a relationship with his music teacher. She drove her egotistical boyfriend away. He runs a second generation of mobsters.  They'll fall in love. Or so the rumor has it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hello new readers and old, this is potatoscribbles again! (pops confetti poppers) I've wanted to see this movie since I saw the trailer in late november/early december and I finally saw it in my city the last day it was in theaters (and I've been talking about it ever since!)
> 
> \- they're all humans because it'd be easier to dance with each other  
> \- I don't know why I love ash and johnny but I love ash and johnny
> 
> I made a poll on my twitter and this was the au that won, so I hope you all enjoy! of course I want to give credit to Illumination for the creation of the animated movie Sing as well as the various artists I will credit every chapter for the songs used in the fanfic!

A large stage stood open faced for the audience to delve themselves into. It’s wide red curtains curved into bells, the seams tied at the hips with thick, golden ropes. The smell of lemon soaked the freshly polished wooden floors, the mahogany gleaming under the limelight. A single woman graced the stage, section of coils in her hair pulled up into mini pigtail buns. In a light blue dress that hugged her hips, she stood alone under the single stage light that shined at the center of the stage. Her eyes drowned in the shadows of her the fallen coils against her cheekbones. “ _♫_ _There’s pain, life hurts…_ ” Her soft-spoken voice, barely louder than a whisper, told the beginnings of another woman who was far louder than her.

“ _♫_ _There’s a thousand things you think you don’t deserve. All hope is lost…_ ” Tales of romance and sorrow, petty clichés, and identities lost behind the masks of high school clicks. “ ** _♫_** _When you spend it all and just can’t beat the odds…_ ”

The light draws back, Meena’s voice resonating into the darkness. “ _♫_ _You can find love with us…_ ” 

◆◆◆

Ash rifted her red guitar, its cries ricocheted into the underground club. A small crowd clustered the half-bit stage as her vocals rolled with a crackling fire against her throat, the flame growing dim in her eyes. “ _♫_ _What a shame, what a shame we all remain … such fragile broken things._ ” Her eyes caught site of the bassist whose pink heart-shaped sunglasses came off as redundant for their gig, her back-up vocals barely set to par from high-pitched laughter. “ _♫_ _A beauty half betrayed…_ ” The forced sneer faded into a smirk, and then a straight face made into stone. “ _♫_ _Butterflies with punctured wings…_ ”  
  
Ash sung, facing the crowd now as her hand found the mic and the mic stand. “ _♫_ _Still there are darkened places, deep in my heart_ _… Where once was blazing light. Now, there's a tiny spark._ ”  
  
“ _♫_ _Oh Glory …_ _Come and find me._ ” The strum of the bass scratched her eardrums. “ _♫_ _Oh Glory_ _… Come and find me._ ” Fire burned within the irises of Ash’s eyes as the row of stage lights above her rotated and flashed rays of red and white into the crowd. Ripping the strings off her guitar, she stretched her vocal cords into the microphone, cutting air with the beat of the drums behind her. “ _♫_ _Dancing all alone_ _… to the sound of an enemy's song. I'll be lost until … you find me. Fighting on my own, in a war that's already been won._ ” Turning the guitar around like an over-the-shoulder backpack, Ash gripped the mic stand with both hands. “ _♫_ _I'll be lost until you come and find me here_ _._ ” The dragging cord of the bassist pulled back the energy, her hands slipping to her sides, her voice straining another phrase. “ _♫_ _Oh Glory…_ ”

 

The sound of glass dispersing and breaking apart from metal resounded into open space as Johnny drove his body out of the bank. “ _♫_ _Glory…!_ ” Dashing into unsolicited alley, observing the mayhem and ruckus behind him, Johnny sprinted into the night. Fire alarms blared as people crowded the streets as chatters filled the air. Turning back, he blazed onward with a relief grin as a beaten down vehicle zoomed towards him.

“Johnny, get in the car!” Tires screeched as he leaped into the back of the black pickup truck as sounds of police sirens closing in from the distance. As the tires burned rubber in the speed off, Johnny stretched back, his voice echoing to the sky. “ _♫_ _One blaze of glory! Glory…!_ ”

He leaned against the back seat of the pickup, his voice falling into small mumbles as his face turned solemn and glum. “ _♫_ _Find glory in a song that rings true, truth like a blazing fire … an eternal flame._ ” 

“Way to go, Johnny. You really did a knock in the bank. Your father would be proud.” These words clenched his chest as he slouched deeper into the truck.

“Thanks Barry” was all he could muster as the group talked over him about their sudden gains and riches. They quickly faded into nothing more than blurbs of bubbles as if he had thrown himself into a fishbowl filled with water, separating himself from the rest of the world. 

“ _♫_ _Find, one song, a song about love. Glory, from a pretty-boy front man…_ ” His eyes wandered off to the side, the images of the scenery blurring into linear streaks like paint strokes he, himself, repeatedly dragged on a stretched-out canvas. “ _♫_ _…Who wasted opportunity._ ” 

His gaze drifted to the sky. “ _♫_ _One song, he had the world at his feet. Glory, in the eyes of a young girl … a young girl. Find glory … beyond the cheap colored lights. One song, before the sun sets._ ” 

Ripping of his mask, Johnny tossed it to the side as it rattled against the metal, “ _♫_ _One song to redeem this empty life!_ ” He clenched his shirt, the lightning bolt coiled into itself like a tornado as he curled into himself, his voice crying with words spilling from his lips. “ _♫_ _Time flies! And then, no need to endure anymore! Time dies…!_ ”

 

The slamming of the door echoed into the night. Ash zipped up her red hoodie, the fog escaping her lips like fake cigarette smoke as she let out a sigh. Her eyes found the night sky, trying to count the stars stuck to the black velvet night, as the sirens in the distance blared the air. “Hey” her drummer cooed to her, wrapping her arm around Ash’s shoulder and pulling her attention away, “Is there any way we can convince you to stay? I mean, fuck Becky. she’s not worth the afterthought, Ash. This is your band after all.”

“You’re right. Well, it’s just a temp thing” Ash claimed, “I need a little time to cope with everything. I mean, I have to see them both at school and I can’t just drop Becky from the group.”

“We wouldn’t impose.” The laugh that left her seemed natural, warming her body in contrast to how the cold pressed. Her black bobby pins that pulled her fringe back to the top of her head exposed her forehead and cheeks to redden like apples.

“I’m just trying to let things settle out, you know?” The hand that caressed her shoulder came with the comfort she didn’t realize she needed, the voice fading as the drummer moved forward and giving a slight wave of her hand.

“Alright, I guess we’ll see you when we see you then.” 

“I’ll keep you guys posted.” She strolled down the streets to her home, the lights bright like a row of fireflies. Under the lamplights, a sharp pain spurred in her chest. Coming undone as if she was a puppet with a loose string, her mind wandered to previous events that led her to becoming a soloist from a band she had created, becoming a future laughing stock at her school, and fell two steps back on a dream she had since the beginning of her middle school years. Her two-timing, shit bag of a boyfriend – Lance – and her bassist, Becky. The space between her brows shrunk at the thought.

It was fine, for the most part. It drove her to new horizons, it _set her free_ to not be blinded by his monstrosity of an ego and truly allowed her to delve into her passions without the thought of carrying anyone around. But alas, high school was more superficial than that. Having to force her status with a football jock, only to be tossed aside by a chick in her own band, had done a number on her. Rumors, rumors — everyone drank to their hearts content in other people’s misery and having to go to the same school as all of them made her insides rot. If she had even the slightest encounter with either them, she—

 

Ash jolted at the sound of a locker slamming in front of her. The upturn of her brow as she caught sight of a blue and gold letterman jacket, the V patch on over his heart. _Typical_. The school was far too small to her liking. “ _♫_ _You know I don’t too well with apologies._ ” Ash’s eyes rolled as she turned on her heel, her feet pushing her forward in strength that her own heart seemed to lack. Lance followed her persistently, walking backwards in front of her. “ _♫_ _I just need one more shot at forgiveness—_ ”

“ _♫_ _Who do you think you are?_ ” Ash hissed, her tongue sharpened with ice.. “ _♫_ _Running around leaving scars, collecting your jar of hearts…_ ”

“ _♫_ _But is it too late now to sorry?_ ” He cut off. He spun around, waving his hands as he outlined her figure. The other groaned in agony as he grabbed a hold of her wrist and spun her around to face him. “ _♫_ _Cause I’m missing more than just your body._ ” Crossing her arms, Ash rolled her eyes at his blinding ego that gave Lance the audacity to sell himself like a fool to her. “ _♫_ _Is it too late now to say sorry? Yeah I know that I let you down—_ ” 

He spoke in foreign tongues that rubbed her the wrong way as if each word was laced with sand paper. The very sight of him infected her body like a virus, the pathogen tearing at her poorly patched wounds. Blood rushed to Ash’s core, overflowing into her arms as she pushed Lance forward, his back smashing into the locker. The anger took over and with more than a pretty face and a rock n’ roll attitude, Ash had far more strength than anyone was willing to give her credit for. The noise in the back of her head dropped, a drone rubbing against her temporal, the bass driving her forward. Pulling her voice from her core, Ash came in like thunder. “ _♫_ _Here we are, going back at it again. Are you serious? I guess you are, you are, you are…_ ”

Murmurs filled the hallway as crowds of students searched for the loud noise that came from the broken pair. Lance offered nothing but a half-twisted smile, feigning innocence while Ash bit back her tongue. From the corner of her eye, Ash could catch a glimpse of Becky emerging from the crowd, her pupil getting lost in the oceans of her deep blue irises. “ _♫_ _Do I need to say more? While I was home alone, you were away with other chicks._ ” Clenching her fist, she grabbed Lance by the collar, punching him hard with her left until he spun and toppled over Becky alongside the surrounding bystanders. Stepping over to them, she lifted up her fist about to take another blow “ _♫_ _I guess who you must have forgot who you’re fuckin’ with. Well so long…_ ”

The ground disappeared before her as Ash’s body yanked backwards like the pullback on a rollercoaster. The sight of the principal came in like a quick vision: an older woman with bright pink lipstick that aged her. Her glass eye that didn’t move stared back at Ash, her reflection staring back at her as if she was looking into a mirror. “Ash, may I see you in my office?” Her nasally voice rung in her ears, her smile almost cryptic as she smiled from ear to ear. “As for the rest of you” she announced to the other students, “I suggest you all continue with your day.”

Students scattered, their chatter fading away as if they were being pulled back from the shore and into the waters where they belong. Ms. Crawly wrapped her arm around Ash’s shoulder, guiding her to the principal’s office. “So… may I ask what spurred the altercation between you and Lance?”

Ash leaned back in her seat with arms crossed, “His face annoyed me.” Ms. Crawly got out of her seat, her body shimming over to the coffee maker. Shaking hands, rattling cups, she came back with a cup of coffee in her hand.

“It’s not my place to insert myself into your lives, but fighting in this school is prohibited.”

“Yes, Ms. Crawly.” From her drawer, she pulled out Ash’s folder, skimming it over. “Constantly sleeping in class, slight attitude to your teachers… you didn’t really have an offense until this point, but spending some time with Mr. Moon might do you some good.”

“Detention? What is this, preschool?”

“Detention is very real in this day in age, dear. Think of this more like community service—”

“Over a single punch?” The walls in Ash’s composure was concaving into itself at the thought of having to waste her lunch in a classroom of misfits when she could be in the music room, working on things she actually cared about.

“I’m sure with an artistic background such as yourself, you will do more good for him than wasting your time reflecting in a raggedy ol’ classroom, don’t you think?”

She raised a brow at the older’s statement. “… I suppose?”

“Then it’s settled, a few weeks of detention under the guidance of Mr. Buster Moon.” Stamping a pink slip, Ms. Crawly handed Ash a piece of paper outlining the details of what she had just relayed to her. Guiding her to the drama club room in the building over, Ms. Crawly handed her over to the designated teacher. Her eyes fell around the damn near empty room. There was a small stage that could probably fit a dozen people near the door where the teacher’s desk sat across the other side of the room against the wall. Stage props like feathered boas and masquerade masks were stuffed together in boxes with school band jackets or battered flapper dresses. Scattered desks and plain chairs spread in front of the stage and only three seats were occupied.

The drama teacher, Buster Moon, sat in one of the desks turned faced the others. With a scruffy beard, he resembled much like a gameshow host with a blue suit and red bow tie. He was talking to another student. Ash didn’t know much about her based on how the general student body spoke of her. She was a quiet, kind of faded into the background type: always wearing her light blue hoodie and rounded white headphones. Beyond that, all she knew was her name: Meena.

Her eyes drifted to the back and her breath got caught in her throat. He leaned forward in his seat, dozing off as he rested the line of his cheekbone on the palm of his hand. With his tousled black hair gelled to a sex spilled fashion, dressed in a black leather jacket and some washed out jeans: now this was a man Ash had heard so much about. The way he disappears behind the music room with young and new music teacher, Ms. Rosita, or the way he leads a gang of ruffians by the symbol of a lightning bolt plastered on his green cotton sweater. All these stories of this one man and legend goes he has never spoke a word against them. Ash gulped hard when those burning hazels glowed like floating lanterns as his eyes caught hers. _Johnny_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the songs listed in this chapter (in order by appearance) include:  
>   
> 1\. I Bet You Don’t Curse God – Christina Grimmie  
> 2\. Part II – Paramore  
> 3\. One Song Glory – Jonathan Larson (Rent)  
> 4\. Sorry – Justin Bieber  
> 5\. Jar of Hearts – Christina Perri  
> 6\. In the Air – Teyana Taylor


	2. Chapter 2

Neither Ash nor Johnny was willing to let down their gaze until the sound of Buster Moon chimed in and drew their attention on him. “Ah, Ms. Crawly!” Ash observed the way Johnny’s eyes turned from hers to the stage. “What can I do for you this fine morning?”

“Good morning, Mr. Moon” the old woman greeted, nudging Ash to move forward. Buster Moon’s face lit up as he held both hands in hers. “This is Ash, she’ll be spending a few weeks with you and the other drama students.”

“Drama students?” she interrogated with exasperation.

“It’s a pleasure, Ash. I hear so much about you from other students.”

“Huh?” 

“And as for the drama students, yes. They’re part of my class but only Meena here is devoted to the club.” She glanced over the empty room, only to give the teacher before her a raise of brow in suspicion. “As you can see, not many of them show up, but we have a few willing to lend a helping hand for this performance.” He held Ash by the shoulders, a gleam in his eye as he smiled from ear to ear. “But with a student with such a well-known background, I’m sure you’ll fit right in here.”

“Ah— wait in a minute, I’m only here because Ms. Crawly told me to—” 

Buster Moon spun her around and began to push her to the other side of the room. “Nonsense—Thank you, Ms. Crawly! I’ll have her up to date in two shakes—” he called over as the principal slowly made her departure, “Everyone here enjoys a little excitement and the theater is where it’s at.”

“I’m not too sure this is—”

“ _♫_ _Please_ ” he told her as he placed her into the seat. From the background, she could hear Johnny clearing his throat to suppress a snicker, causing her slump down in her seat. She caught Meena offering a small smile with a slight shrug of the shoulders, but Buster Moon tapped Ash’s desk, controlling her attention back to him. “ _♫_ _I’ve met a few students just like you. Each one with some disappointment, pain, where they ain’t no ointment. So much for excuses, with a kid like you, I’m asking you to jump into the fray. Your answer is one word—_ ”

“N—”

“ _♫_ _—Okay!_ ” Ash groaned as covered her face with the palm of her hands. He jumped onto the stage, the lights turning on and shining brightly.  “ _♫_ _Don't matter what you look like, don't matter what you wear, how many rings you got on your finger. We don't care, no, we don't care._ ”

He pointed at Meena, then Johnny, then back at Ash. He used the stage as an explosion of light as if it was the Fourth of July. The lights followed him and twinkled to the beat of his words. “ _Don't matter where you come from_ _,_ _don't even matter what you are. Got em' all in here, we got em' all in here._ _If they all knew what they wanted, what we wanted, need to do. I tell ya what we need from you._ ” Leaning forward, his body almost fell off the stage as he held out his hand to Ash.

“ _♫_ _My dreams are on you. kid, Go make 'em come true! Climb that uphill slope, keep pushing that envelope. You're my one last hope and it comes down to what’s in you!_ ” The lights burned out, spiraling the room into darkness. Meena turned on the classroom lights and Buster Moon sat at the edge of the stage. “Still not convinced?” he asked.

“I’m just not entirely sure what I’m here for. I thought I’m here for detention.” He tilted his head, a small smile appearing on his face again. 

“Exactly!”

Ash switched gears and stared back at Meena. “Is he always like this?” Meena responded with a soft small and a light nod.

“He’s rather charismatic.” Her voice was soft, as if the other was talking to the clouds. But the thunder began to roll in as Buster Moon told her the truth of her situation.

“You, Ash, will be taking the lead in our production in the spring.”

“What?” Her voice scratched her throat from the shock. They turned into sand paper, causing her to feel parch, but she just sat in her seat, letting older’s words sink in. Suddenly, the irony of hitting Lance seemed almost like God’s play and everything was pulling her into a path she never saw herself seeing.

“We already have most of the cast, but due to some slight issues…” he paused as he glanced at Meena and Johnny, “We’re in dire need of a lead and rumor has it that you’re a lead singer of a rock band.”

“…Yes. But I’m not with them right now…” she paused, looking up at the teacher with eyes that brimmed with tears, “Due to some slight issues.”

“This would be the best time now, wouldn’t it be? You have the time and the production is right up your alley: a revisited rock classic musical.” 

“I mean, you’re not wrong…but, this is a lot to take in.”

Buster Moon’s hand found his chin as he tapped it rhythmically, a slight hum churning in his throat. “Tell you what. We typically hold practices after school. Although your detention will typically be held during lunch, why don’t you check us out after school. Think about it until then and if you truly impose, we’ll keep you on stage crew until you uphold your detention time.” 

“I…guess that’s fine?” The school bell began to ring, signaling students to head back to classes and Buster Moon to look at his black leather watch.

“Ah, fifth period already? Ah—but great! Then we’ll see you after school.”

Ash grabbed her black crossover-body bag and guitar case, pulling it over shoulder. She glanced back as she gave a slight wave of her hand, before the final chiming bell rang. Walking down the hall, she noticed a woman passing her by.

Wavy, blond hair that folded inward on her shoulders. She wore a pink pin-up blouse and blue jeans that rolled up on her ankles. She slipped a small smile to Ash before she turned away and opened the door to the drama room. “Come on, Johnny. Let’s go. You’re late for class.”

“You keep a tight leash on that student of yours, don’t you Rosita?” Buster Moon echoed in the background, a booming laugh rubbing against Ash’s eardrums. Johnny walked out with the room teacher, his eyes catching hers once more before turning around and strolling away with Rosita. Ash tried to ignore the red flags that raced through her thoughts, rumors that feigned truth, but curiosity pulled her. Hadn’t she been told that curiosity killed the cat? Yet she pursued the pair, following behind with a fair amount of distance.

Rosita sat down at the teacher’s desk, her free period leaving her to give Johnny secret piano lessons. The broken keys played like a broken record as he tried persistently. When the piano sang in a low drone, Johnny slammed onto the keys. He groaned alongside the dragged out piano echo as he pulled the skin of his cheeks down. “Augh…” 

“You don’t need to be taking these lessons, Johnny.”

“I know.” This was the first time she heard his voice. She was drawn to his Cockney-accent that had taken her by surprise. Had he always sounded like that? She couldn’t even recall a single time when the man even stated his own name, let alone hear him speak a sentence long enough to hear his voice.

“The rumors aren’t dying down about us. Aren’t you worried about that?”

“There are worse things” he grumbled under his breath. “Besides…” he said with a broken smile, “Ms. Crawly and the other teachers know the truth. I would be worried about your job more than what other students have to say about me.” 

“What would your father have to say about this?” Johnny refused to answer as he ruffled the music sheets, changing the song.

“Hey Ms. Rosita, can you answer help me out with this piece?” 

Ash turned away, mentally arguing at herself for listening into their conversation. She turned away to head back to class, only to realize she would be late. It would give her another reason to go to Ms. Crawly’s office; however, skipping class would subjugate her to the same offense. She began to pace back and forth in the hallway, waiting for someone to catch her and send away. She glanced at the clock hanging above the row of lockers, fifth period was history; her teacher didn’t accept late students beyond the first ten minutes. Holding her guitar with both hands, she decided to make a dash for it until her body tensed up when the music room opened.

Johnny’s eyes found Ash and she forced a smile with grimace. “Uh…” She tried to find the words to explain what she was doing there at that moment without making it seem as if she had spied on him, but the reasons were diminishing one by one as that scenario seemed like the only logical explanation. “Hey…?” _God, why was this so awkward?_

“Hey” he responded back. His face was stone cold, but if Ash stared long enough, she could possibly interpret him trying to hide another laugh.

“Oh? You can talk.” The words just spilled out of her and at that point, she couldn’t tell if it sounded rude or incompetent of her, but only then had Johnny let out a laugh that shook her heart, taking it out of sync with its usual beat. The way the corners of his eyes crinkled and his mouth spread wide from cheek to cheek, his voice had a rough tone to it and somehow, Ash wanted to hear it again.

“People talk of me, not really _to_ me, so I never had a reason to, not even with the Greasers.” She thought back to the group of loud mouths that Johnny hung out with. Sons of members in his father’s mobster group that kind of hold the same dynamic with Johnny as their leader. She deduces them as kind of annoying rather than intimidating: the way that they all yell over each other during lunch or rough house after school. They needed to be put in their place, but she realized that Johnny never really had that image in the group. He always just sat and laughed along, but if anything, he was rarely there to begin with. He was always with— 

She stared beyond him, looking at the music room where he was playing with Ms. Rosita. He was there, learning music, but people just wanted to twist the story and make it something more than it really was. Spiraling in a fit of anger and guilt, Ash wanted to smack her face for falling for it too. Getting lost in all of these thoughts, she could feel her body ache from the muscle strain. “Ash?” Johnny called to her, “Are you alright?”

Blinking back into her senses, Ash shook her head and looked back at Johnny. “Ah—yeah, it’s just…” she contemplated how to formulate the next words she was going to say. Her eyes avoided contact once more as she gazed onward to a direction she did not know. Brushing her hair behind her left ear, she mumbled under her breath, “I guess there’s a lot we don’t know about each other.”

Wide eyed and jaw slightly agape, Johnny looked down at the woman who was over a half foot shorter than him as he offered a slight shrug of the shoulders. He took a few steps until he was paralleled with her as his voice fell into a whisper for only her to hear. “What’s your favorite color?” 

Ash looked up, her eyes meeting his as if it was second nature. He offered a slight tilt of the head to signal her to continue walking with him. As she took the first step, her answer slipped passed her lips. “Black…”

“Yellow.” They began to stroll the hallway. As they passed the clock, Ash noticed the ten minutes had passed and being with Johnny had made the decision for her. Yet this fact didn’t faze her. For some reason, she wanted to continue to know about him: one, to know more than just the rumors and two, to simply hear him speak. She enjoyed the sound of this voice she never heard until then. “What’s your favorite subject you’re taking this year?”

“I don’t really have one.”

He chuckled. “Same.” 

They walked to the quad, taking a seat on one of the benches. She wondered why he was willing to entertain even a minute with her, but he sat on the other side of bench, listening to each answer he asked her no matter how obscured it was. He asked about her favorite book to read on a rainy day, a random fear she had, or how old she was when she found out Santa doesn’t exist. He procured the strangest thing she got for a birthday present and the scene in a movie that made her cry. At the same time, she delved full heartedly to his answers of how he knows how to drive a manual car, how he wants to travel and visit a puppy farm. She discovered that he hates coffee and he jokes around that Pluto is his favorite planet because why would anyone take away a planet’s identity.

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” he asked next.

Ash leaned forward, her cheek resting in the palm of her hand. She didn’t look at him when she answered. “I want to be a singer. I want to be able to write my own songs and stick to who I am.”

“I heard you’re already close to being that.”

“Well, what about you, Johnny?”

“Ah—” The bell chimed over his answer, causing them to hear the opening of doors and students filling the halls. “I should start heading to class. You should too. You don’t want anyone catching you with me, I think.” She stood up, watching him getting ready to leave, but she couldn’t find a reason to get him to stay. “See you after school though, Ash.” Before she could offer a response, he was already dashing towards his next class. She stood there for a moment, relaying a response she thought she heard. “ _Same._ ”

◆◆◆

Ash sat in a desk closer to the back when people started to flood into the classroom. She recognized a few of them. There were the Heathers. Three students with elevate status: a blond cheerleader, a brunette in student council, and a redhead in the soccer team. Then there’s Richard, Raymond, and Daniel, all of whom she thought would have been in the drama club already but she didn’t know them well enough outside of that assumption. She usually saw Richard and Raymond together in the quad; Richard did graffiti on his school planner while Raymond played chess with some of the other students. She tried to observe the other students, but she couldn’t recognize their faces. She usually kept to herself outside of her band and Lance, the more she thought about it, the less surprised she became. 

“Alright people. Let’s all settle down quickly, I have a few announcements” Buster Moon proclaimed, “We currently have the spot filled for Sandy Dumbroski and that’s Ash over here.” The pain in her neck cracked with the sharpness in her turn as she stared at Buster Moon with a sharp eyebrow, her body experiencing a self-made whiplash. “Now, I realize this may only be a temporary thing, but I need to see the dynamic on how you all interact with this addition.”

No one objected this idea. In fact, no one had an opinion whatsoever as they either talked amongst themselves or stared off into an abyss that didn’t exist. He turned to Ash, gesturing her onto the stage. “Go on up there with all the others.” Ash gulped hard as she followed. She glanced over her shoulder and noticed Meena wasn’t on stage. Her eyes fluttered to the door, noticing that Johnny wasn’t even in the classroom at all. However, it didn’t matter with Mr. Moon egging her on to hurry. “For the usual icebreaker, guys and girls, split up and start singing a song that works well with one another in lyric and then try to make it work melodically.”

Ash’s jaw drop as the task seemed rather vague, but the two groups disperse, discussing amongst another until Daniel moved forward. “ _♫_ _I miss the taste of a sweeter life. I miss the conversation. I'm searching for a song tonight. I'm changing all of the stations._ ” 

Raymond stepped in next to him, adjusting his bowtie. Ash observed off centered as the other males hummed in the background. Richard, with his hand over his mouth, had been offering a low beat box accompaniment to keep the melody in place. “ _♫_ _I like to think that we had it all. We drew a map to a better place. But on that road, I took a fall, oh baby why did you run away?_ ”

Snaps started echoing, pulling the beat of the men down as Richard’s beat boxing died down. The brunette Heather, with her head down low, slowly drew her head up high as she stepped to the center. “ _♫_ _One, two, three, he’s gonna run back to me._ ”

Behind her, the blond Heather echoed in the background. “ _♫_ _'Cause I'm the best baby that they never gotta keep…_ ” Ash froze as the two Heathers battled for the main lines. She didn’t care about the competition; it was more that she didn’t know the song.

“ _♫_ _One, two, three, he’s gonna run back to me._ ”

“ _♫_ _They always wanna come, but they never wanna leave._ ”

Relaying all possible words that could possibly get strung together to make a rhythmical sentence, Ash stood without a word as the girls chimed in unison. “ _♫_ _Ex's and the oh, oh, oh's they haunt me. Like ghosts they want me to make 'em all…they won't let go._ ”

The boys charged in, moving closer to the girls. The space between them and Ash began to shrink. “ _♫_ _But I was there for you in your darkest times. I was there for you in your darkest night!_ ” All eyes moved to her as if the camera was panning in close to her face. She hadn’t said a word yet and the hairs pulling on her neck signaled her that she needed to think of something fast.

“ _♫_ _Wait…_ ” _Wait, what song had that word in it again?_ The door swung open as Johnny entered the classroom, the loud crash sounding like a cymbal smash from a drum. The eyes fell on her again as she tapped her foot, her eyes flowing side to side between the two groups. “ _♫_ _They don't love you like I love you. Wait, they don't love you like I love you. Ma-a-a-aps, wait! They don't love you like I love you…_ ”

She slowly turned to the female group, strumming her guitar quietly as the old light rock melody echoed the room. “ _♫_ _Pack up, don't stray. Oh say, say, say…they don’t love you like I love you._ ”

“ _♫_ _I wonder, where were you?_ ” Ash turned around and noticed the male group came in, surrounding her in a circle as they danced around her. “ _♫_ _When I was at my worst, down on my knees._ _You said you had my back, so I wonder, where were you? All the roads you took came back to me, so I'm following the map that leads to you. There’s nothing I can do._ ” They spun her around individually, sending her twirling like a top toy and following her to the other side of the stage as if to reach out to her. “ _♫_ _The map that leads to you…following, following, following…_ ”

Precisely when she stopped herself, the rest of the cast smiled at her with approving grins. Buster Moon walked on stage with his hands rested on his hips. “You didn’t follow the song the others sang” he noted.

“Yeah, I didn’t know it. Not really my style either.”

“But you still picked a song that went along with them.”

“I wasn’t too sure about that either…”

“Ash, we’d be honored to have you. If you’re willing.” Before she could offer a response, Richard stepped forward and pointed at the man who walked in halfway through the ice breaker.

“Not that I’m against Ash or anything, but shouldn’t she sing with Johnny?” he argued.

“Oh, that’s unnecessary—” she tried to persuade, but the room fell on Johnny who was sitting on the desk closest to her.

“It’s true that we’ve never seen Johnny sing either” the red Heathers added, “Mr. Moon just handed it to him because he looked the part.”

“Though since it’s Johnny we’re talking about, whether he sings well or not, no one will believe it.” She couldn’t pinpoint who said the comment, but her eyebrow twitched with irritation as she glanced over her shoulder in search for the culprit.

“Now, now, Johnny has just as much talent as the rest of us.” The students ignored Buster Moon’s remarks as they shrug and chose to collect their things instead. “Hey, hey, hey, where are you all going?”

“Isn’t this fine? We practiced with Ash, we’ll do rehearsals when the time comes” the blond Heather told. Johnny only leaned back in his seat, not a word passing his lips as students began to file out of the classroom. Ash watched them leave, the words of Buster Moons protest flowing in the background. When the room fell silent, her attention shifted back to the teacher.

“Is this really okay?” she asked.

“This is really the beginning of production” Buster Moon assured, “We should fine.” She hummed a response, finding a seat at the edge of the stage. With hands clasped and rested on her thighs, Ash began to swing her legs as she leaned over towards Johnny.

“I’d still like to hear you sing.” Johnny laughed as he looked down at his desk, contemplating a song to consider.

“ _♫_ _I'll never be your mother's favorite._ ” Ash tilted her head as Johnny sang a sad love song she used to hear on the radio that played on her commute home. She must have heard that song a hundred times that each and every single word, although out of her own taste, she could recite back so easily. “ _♫_ _Your daddy can't even look me in the eye._ ” Johnny gave a light scoff while he looked down at his desk, a beaten smile as he shook his head sold the character of the song to her. His voice drew her in, compelling her to sing along with him. “ _Oh, if I was in their shoes, I'd be doing the same thing, ‘There goes my little girl Walking with that troublesome guy’._ ”

Ash got off the stage, crossing her arms on his desk. His voice became the Earth and she was a moon caught in his gravitational pull. At a quick glance, she saw his eyes draw back in shock as she grabbed his hand, acting along with her own voice continuing on. “ _♫_ _But they're just afraid of something they can't understand. Oh, but little darlin' watch me change their minds._ ” From afar, Buster Moon gawked at their dynamic. His eyes lit up like fireflies at the image of the pair complemented on another. Had it been the way Johnny stared into her eyes, or the way Ash submitted to him? The flow of their voices chilled his spine and he was almost convinced they were on stage. “ _Yeah for you I'll try, I'll try, I'll try, I'll try. I'll pick up these broken pieces 'til I'm bleeding if that'll make you mine._ ”

His shock soon turned into praise as he nodded along. With a closed eyed smile, he joined the chorus with Ash, turning the song into a duet.  Buster Moon and Meena shot glances at each other. Meena stared back at the pair, a light sigh getting caught in the air. “ _♫_ _Cause’ there'll be no sunlight if I lose you, baby. There'll be no clear skies if I lose you, baby Just like the clouds…my eyes will do the same. If you walk away, everyday it'll rain, rain, rain…_ ”

Ash didn’t have to say it verbally. The way her body heated up made her feel alive in the same way she poured sweat onto the stage she strummed her guitar. She wanted to continue to experience this feeling, to continue on with the production. “I think…I want to try this out” she told them.

Beyond the cheers and the constant pat on the back from Buster Moon, was what Ash wanted to bury deep beneath the surface of her core. As she pulled her hand away from Johnny’s and hearing his voice congratulating her, there was this white noise in her chest that started to fizzle like a shaken soda pop. She wouldn’t admit this familiar yet foreign feeling. Not yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello everyone! potatoscribbles here, I just want to thank you all for the positive feedback so far! I really appreciate all the kudos and comments on here as well as outside ao3! some random notes,  
> \-- the heathers are considered to be the bunnies, but I realized that the shrimp also came as a trio, so there's that.  
> \-- I don't know why, but I see Buster Moon as a disney type singer so his songs appeared from there. (laughs)  
> \-- again, just thank you!
> 
> the songs, in order by appearance, include:
> 
> 1\. One Last Hope – Hercules  
> 2\. Dig a Little Deeper – Princess and the Frog  
> 3\. Maps – Maroon 5  
> 4\. Ex’s and Oh’s – Elle King  
> 5\. Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Maps  
> 6\. It Will Rain – Bruno Mars


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